In the processing of edible poultry, such as chickens and turkeys, it is desirable to separate the meat from the skeletal structure of the poultry carcass so that the meat can be marketed separately, without the bone contained in the meat. The then all meat product can be attractively packaged and sold at the grocery store, and can be sold to restaurants where the meat can be cooked and served in sandwiches or served in relatively small portions which are easy to eat and without requiring the consumer to separate the meat from the bone.
In the past, the process of filleting poultry parts, such as thighs and breasts, has been achieved by hand, with workers manually stripping the meat from the bone. More recently, automated equipment has become available which functions to separate the meat from the skeletal part of the carcass, wherein the breast, usually with legs, wings and back cut away, is placed on a mandrel, and the mandrel moved along a processing path. The meat is gouged, scraped and cut away from the skeletal structure which is rigidly mounted to the mandrel, as the mandrel carries the skeletal structure along the processing path. This process is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,386.
Although automated equipment has been developed and successfully functions to debone the breast portion of the poultry carcass, there are times when the carcass becomes improperly aligned with the mandrel or dislodged from the mandrel, and the deboning process fails. Further, the prior art mandrels are mounted to a conveyor system and are somewhat difficult to remove from the conveyor system for cleaning, repair, etc.
Thus, there is a need for an improved mandrel for a skeletal deboning system for birds, wherein the mandrel reliably mounts the carcass of the bird in proper position, aligned with the cutting elements of the system, and then will function to release the skeletal portion of the carcass after the meat has been removed. Further, there is need for an improved mandrel that can be expediently removed from the conveyor system, cleaned, repaired or replaced, and remounted to the conveyor system.